Antihero
by Bendleshnitz
Summary: How come you like books so much?


**Title:** Antihero  
**Pairing:** Albus Severus Potter/Teddy Lupin  
**Rating:** PG-13 (for some swearing)  
**Prompt:** Books  
**Word count:** 675  
**Beta:** **exartemarte**  
**Warnings:** A few bad words. The pairing can be implied or not. It's up to your slash-y or gen-y imagination :)  
**Summary:** How come you like books so much?  
**A/N:** Originally written for **aigooism** as a Christmas gift. Hope you like it, hun! Don't know if it is what you were expecting, but I had fun exploring this new side of them I've never tried before.

* * *

**Antihero**

Albus sighed in satisfaction as the cold juice settled in his stomach, reducing a little the heat that had made him sweat so much that afternoon. He had taken advantage of having the house to himself for the first time in forever. His parents had taken Lily to the Burrow and, thankfully, they had let him sleep in. This would be his last summer before stepping into the real world with a job and real responsibilities, so Albus decided to take as much advantage of these last two months as possible.

Now, as he charmed his wand to blow air on his face, the idea of flying on his broom for a couple of hours under the intense midday sun sounded really stupid. And let's not add to that the dumbest idea of the day: not wearing sunscreen. Oh, his mother was going to have so much fun scowling at him like a five-year-old while applying healing charms to his shoulders...

Pouring more juice into the glass, Albus walked lazily to the living room, considering taking a nap on the couch and not going all the way up to his room. He was too tired even to Apparate there, breaking his father's rules of not Apparating inside the house.

A mop of messy, turquoise hair sneaking over the back of one armchair surprised him. Albus rolled his eyes wondering what he was doing there and flung himself into the couch, hissing in pain as the material made contact with his red and sensitive skin.

Neither said a word: not a greeting, not a question, not even a look...nothing. Teddy kept reading the book in his hands and Albus stared lazily at the ceiling, concentrating on his breathing and the soft sound of the pages being turned.

"How come you like books so much?" Albus asked suddenly, after minutes of silence. Still not looking at Teddy, nor expecting an answer, he continued. "Godric knows you haven't touched one all through Hogwarts. I swear, the headaches you gave your grandma and my Dad..."

Teddy's chuckle made Albus turn his head. His grey eyes were still running over the lines of the book, but the amusement in his face disturbed the image Albus was all too familiar with.

"What?" Albus asked numbly.

Teddy just bit his bottom lip lightly with a smile still playing on his lips as he shook his head slightly.

"Oh, you think you're so bad-ass," said Albus. "You think you're all cool with your low marks, crazy hair and I-don't-give-a-bloody-shit attitude, but I know it's just a facade. I know it, Teddy. I knew all along." Albus's tone got angrier word by word. "You're such a twat...," he continued crossing his arms and turning his gaze to the ceiling. "A twat that actually likes reading and is smart and really cares but is just too damn afraid of showing- What are you doing?"

Teddy was kneeling by his side smiling. Their faces inches apart as he re-opened the book over Albus chest. The weirdest thing was his smile, which was nothing like the condescending or mocking smiles everyone was now so used to seeing. This one was a happy smile, a smile that expressed secrecy and trust and...and something else Albus couldn't quite grasp.

The hand that wasn't holding the book open moved onto Albus's arm, giving it a gentle squeeze. Albus blushed when the touch felt more intimate than he expected, his skin tingling under Teddy's lingering fingertips. Their eyes met for a second: green looking intently at grey, trying to understand what this all meant. But before he could find an answer, Teddy averted his eyes, concentrating once more on the pages of his book.

"Do you want me to read to you?"

Albus swallowed hard before taking a deep breath. His vocal chords weren't working any more, and apparently, his brain wasn't either. So he just nodded, watching Teddy read to him about the fifteen-year-old boy who got expelled from school and started facing the adventures of real life by himself.*

_*That story is from "The Catcher In The Rye" by Salinger. A book I really recommend for teenagers._


End file.
